The University of the East Manila Campus has been granted the Autonomous Status by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED). In his letter to UE President Ester A. Garcia dated October 14, 2009, CHED Chairman Emmanuel Y, Angeles wrote the upgrading to the Autonomous Status “has been approved by virtue of Resolution No. 013-2009 for a period of three years effective October 6, 2009 to October 5, 2012.”
The Autonomous Status is the highest recognition that the CHED can grant any private higher education institution in recognition of the awarded institution’s accomplishments, adherence to quality assurance, and commitment to public responsibility and accountability as a higher-education provider. This raises UE Manila from its previous Deregulated Status, which CHED had initially granted in 2001, extended in 2006, and renewed twice: in November 2007 and in March 2009.
As an autonomous private higher education institution (PHEI), UE Manila can now enjoy several institutional benefits that can help the University expand and grow as a whole. These include the entitlement to grant of subsidies and other financial incentives or assistance from CHED, whenever funds are available; the privilege for the Manila Campus, without the need for CHED to monitor, evaluate or grant permits, to determine curricular programs and offer new courses or programs in the undergraduate level, provided these meet minimum standards; the opportunity to establish branches or satellite campuses and to offer extension classes and distance education courses or programs.
CHED’s granting to UE Manila of the Autonomous Status comes after several academic achievements involving the Manila Campus. Last August, the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration program of the College of Business Administration-Manila (CBA Manila) and the Liberal Arts programs of the College of Arts and Sciences-Manila (CAS Manila) were granted the Level III Accredited Status by the Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities Commission on Accreditation (PACUCOA). Following the visit in SY 2008-2009 by CHED’s Institutional Quality Assessment, Monitoring and Evaluation (IQuAME) team, the Manila Campus was declared a Good Teaching Institution [level A(t)].
Likewise contributing eventually to the Autonomous Status of UE Manila are the PACUCOA Level II accredited status of the University’s Doctor of Dental Medicine and Bachelor of Science in Computer Science programs of the College of Dentistry and the College of Computer Studies and Systems (CCSS), respectively, both of which are in the Manila Campus. The CCSS’ status as a CHED-certified Center of Development for Information Technology, effective June 2007 up to March 2010 was no less a factor, as is the College of Dentistry’s consistency not just in producing Top 10 successful examinees—with some landing in 1st Place—in every Dentist Licensure Examination but also in ranking No. 1—such as in the June 2009 exam—among dental schools nationwide that field 26 to 99 candidates in the exam.
In the said letter from the CHED, Chairman Angeles stated that “[t]he Commission will award corresponding wall markers to all autonomous and deregulated HEIs on a date and venue to be announced later.”
CHED, in a previous memorandum order dating back to 2001, had stated that it “recognizes the enormous contribution of [PHEIs] in the growth and prominence of tertiary education in the country and in the Asia-Pacific. CHED is also cognizant of their consistent committed service through quality education, research and extensive work…. [There are] 1,200 PHEIs under [its] supervision, with a total of almost 2.6 million students enrolled in some 978 academic programs in the undergraduate and graduate levels… [Since the task of supervising these PHEIs is] formidable and demanding… the Commission on Higher Education rationalizes its supervision of [PHEIs] by granting autonomy or deregulated status to deserving private colleges or universities.”